Emphasis
/ˈɛmfəsɪs/
Definitions
2 meaningsSpecial importance, value, or prominence given to something.
/ˈɛmfəsɪs/
Special importance or significance given to something.
The teacher put a strong emphasis on reading.
💡 Simply: Emphasis is like highlighting the most important part of a story or a project. Imagine you're telling your friend about your day, and you emphasize the funny parts by speaking louder or using hand gestures. It's about making something stand out!
👶 For kids: It means making something extra important.
More Examples
The company's marketing strategy puts a lot of emphasis on social media.
The new policy puts an emphasis on employee training.
How It's Used
"The company placed a strong emphasis on customer service."
"Her emphasis on the key points made the speech very effective."
Special stress or force given to a word or words when speaking or writing.
/ˈɛmfəsɪs/
Special force or intensity of expression that gives importance to something.
She spoke with great emphasis to convey her emotions.
💡 Simply: Imagine you're trying to get your friend's attention. You might shout 'LOOK!' and then point to make your point, right? That's emphasis! It's about making something stand out, in spoken or written form. It can be done through your voice, through the words you chose, or through formatting like bold or underlining.
👶 For kids: It means saying or writing something in a special way to make it extra important.
More Examples
The comedian used emphasis to create a comedic effect.
His emphasis on the second syllable made the word sound quite strange.
How It's Used
"He spoke with a great deal of emphasis to convey his conviction."
"The author used italics to give emphasis to a particular word."
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
Idioms & expressions
put emphasis on
To give special importance or attention to something.
"The school puts emphasis on art and music education."
with emphasis
In a way that gives special attention or importance to something.
"She repeated the instructions with emphasis to make sure everyone understood."
From Late Latin *emphasis*, from Greek *émphasis* meaning 'a showing, manifestation,' from *emphainein* meaning 'to show forth,' from *en-* 'in' + *phainein* 'to show.'
The word 'emphasis' first appeared in English in the 16th century, influenced by Greek and Latin linguistic principles. Its early uses focused on the rhetorical or linguistic stressing of words.
Memory tip
Think of EMPHASIS as putting EXTRA WEIGHT on something you want people to notice.
Word Origin
"to show forth"